Lutron RadioRA

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StreamlineGT

StreamlineGT

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Since we have a similar topic, I will take this opportunity to ask this question.

I have recently taken a Lutron RadioRA seminar, and I would be interested in some feedback as to how others have marketed this. I do not do any new construction, so I am limited to retrofit sales only. Is there anybody that markets this as a good part of their business, and is willing to give me some advice. Postcard mailers in affluent neighborhoods? Existing customers? Any particular key feature you focused on that produced more sales than others?

Thanks in advance!

Brendon
 
I design, install, program and troubleshoot Lutron Home automation products and tend not to be involed with selling or promoting. But, I can tell you what the customers have liked the best with Radio RA. 1. They like the car visor controls so that when they drive up to the home, they can turn on lighting and other items connected to the relay inputs. 2. They like the astronomic timeclock so specific lights will come on at sunset and/or off at sunrise (this identifies daylight savings time). 3. If they have a security system connected, they like the lights to flash when the bugaler alarm activates and all the lights to come on when the fire alarm activates. 4. Many just like using a labeled keypad instead of guessing what switches do what.
 
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I have been marketing the AuroRA system for some of the same reasons, and have sold some, but not many. I have a very limited reach right now being new to my own business. I don't have the funds to do a lot of networking and advertising. This is something I hope will take off for me in my area of the world. I have a small system ordered for my own home, which will replace the AuroRA I have now. Hopefully it will become more of a showpiece, than for my own convenience. Time will tell. Thanks.
 
I put Radio RA in my house thinking it would make a great showroom. Hey, a writeoff too. I put a projector screen in my basement and I wish now I had the money from those switches to buy a nice couch setup for the basement. My kids beanbags are not so comfortable. You don't get off the ground as fast as you did when you were 8. The system is cool but I can't seem to find a buyer for it anywhere.
 
Good luck finding customer's for the RadioRA. I've put in a few, but people have a hard time swallowing the price. The ones I did were arund $4K for materials at my cost.
 
I did one ra system for a very big house and a good customer very expensive, and very hard to sell. But it did install easy and worked as advertised but very expensive all said and done if memory serves me it was around 24k. installed this was years ago but as far as i know the system still works fine. Finding a market for this system could be tough.

Good luck
 
They should have told you how to sell it in the seminar IMO...

Anyway, RA does pretty good in my area - as most of the market is full and parital remodel of existing homes. In say common areas of homes where areas are open to eachother - a common design feature. What sells it is that you can tie these areas together without having to open more walls or expand work into other areas where the customer was not interested in opening rock, patching, painting etc. If you mention those cost while talking about it thengs start to sound relitively cheap in the grand sceme. Offer the alternitive of trenching expensive finishes from 'here to there', and 'there to there' and they start to see the light - or they then feel they can just walk down that dark hallway drunk at the end of every party - or just leave the light on.... But truth be told, yes you are talking people out of what you sell most of - WIRE, and it's installation. But if you calc' out the cost of controling say this light 'here' from 'there' with say Meastro, opening the walls installing wire, patching paint - just plain ol' inconvieniance... Radio RA starts to sound a lot better. And if you have to start messing with 'arts and crafts' wood work, or victorian era moldings from point to point - Radio RA is cheap compared to total "wired" project cost.

Sure the devices cost more - but not that much more... IT'S THE KEYPADS THAT GET YA!

And as I have mentioned before in other threads about this, if you have say six dimmers @ $40ea or more that would be in a single location, all 3-way'ed to the other 6 accessory dimmers (plus installation) and you have a 6 gang plate in your hand vs. a $500 master control - the master control starts to seem reasonable.

FYI the newer/bigger market for RA is shade controls, and intergrating them to the lighting - people love automated shades and skylights around here lately. Shut off lights, open shades and vise versa... Leave a card with the first one, and thier friends the Jones' call shortly after...
 
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